When We All Fall Asleep

Chapter 2 - Let's Play Fantasy

Another stupid appointment in that stupid room. I could hear the bubble sounds that the aquarium in that room made as I tapped my fingers frequently on my left knee. I kept staring at the floor, like I didn't give a damn what Mr. Schneider was talking to me about, but I really didn't give a shit.

I heard the muffled sound of her voice echo through my ears, but the only thing I could think about was that woman who had jumped on me in my dream. I had never had sleep paralysis every other day in my life. I really didn't know what was going on. So, if I didn't even know, let alone an old man with glasses on a notebook in his hand?

Billie? Billie!

I heard his last scream before returning my attention. He seemed to be quite precious to me, as I could see the worried look in his eyes as he stared at me intently.

"Yes?" I said, as I said, normally.

"Wow, Billie, you're worrying me so much! What's happening with you? Billie?"

That woman... That woman... That woman who jumped on me...

"Billie!"

I came back to my consciousness once more. This time, I shook my head trying to push those repetitive thoughts out of my head as I looked back into Mr. Schneider's worried face.

"Oh yes, Mr. Schneider, I..." I lowered my head as I thought of something to reply. "...I was just thinking about a few things. But you can keep talking! Excuse me."

"Okay, that's enough," he said as he walked over to his desk of his clients' files and took a greenish-tinted paper in his hands from a drawer. "I'm going to give you a prescription for a medicine and I want you to take it daily," he said as he wrote on the green paper.

"Oh, please, Mr. Schneider!" I complained, slapping my hands on my thighs. "You don't need all that! I am fine! I swear to you."

"You're making me very worried, Billie. This is not normal. No other client of mine acted the way you are acting. This case you are going through can be very serious! So try to take care of yourself more. Flush all the things you've lived through and move on!"

"You'll forgive me, Mr. Schneider, but you don't know what you're talking about," I said as I got up from the couch, standing up and face to face with him. "My mom just walked away and I'm just trying to get over everything that's been going on! It's nothing serious, I can promise you that."

He stared at me as I spoke. His eyes popped out of his glasses, staring into mine. He stopped writing and I calmed down. He won't give me that recipe anymore.

He tore the green sheet off the pad and handed it to me. Wait, what? I thought he had changed his mind, but he had just finished writing the recipe.

"Take it." He handed me the green paper with that weird handwriting that every psychological person has. "I want you to start taking it from tomorrow, okay?"

It took me a while to take the paper from her hand, as she was so angry staring at him. I just took it out of his hand, grabbed my jacket and walked out of that stupid building, leaving him alone in that empty, sad room. I hope I never have to go back to that place again.

Football training is weird. It's just a bunch of cute kids chasing a ball in a big giant, that's basically it. And it's boring.

My brother was chasing the ball towards the goal, which was being led by George, while Richie was trying to take the ball from his feet. I sat in the stands eating Cheetos and drinking a Coke. I went to look at my cell phone and I had a message from my mom asking how I was.